


a minor inconvenience, a smaller promise

by lackingsoy



Series: hand over hand [4]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Book 3: The King's Men, Canon Compliant, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Missing Scene, aaron minyard apologizes for once in his own Constipated Minyard manner, come near kevin with malicious intent andrew n ur gonna. catch some hands, hm. aaron is less of an asshole than anticipated. troublesome, kevin day gets validated
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:53:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26006008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lackingsoy/pseuds/lackingsoy
Summary: Aaron looked like he wanted to die this time. His shoulders shifted side to side, uncertain and uncomfortable. But his eyes were very clearly honed on the discoloring still visible on Kevin's neck, Allison's intensive powdering long washed off, and the darkness that passed over his eyes could've been misinterpreted for anger and maybe stupider still, regret.
Relationships: Kevin Day & Aaron Minyard, Kevin Day & Andrew Minyard, Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Series: hand over hand [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1887538
Comments: 5
Kudos: 99





	a minor inconvenience, a smaller promise

**Author's Note:**

> aaron cares. he's a lil shit, but based on a few meta posts on tumblr, the little guy gives more of a shit about kevin than most people seem to catch on. so here's something about that!

He had grown complacent in his time spent at the women's dorm: content and lazy-like in safe company. Now that he was back in his room, pressed against his own mattress under his own comforter, Kevin felt weirdly caged in. He couldn't fall asleep, hot and resistent to it. He turned on his side for the seventh time since he laid himself out and stared at the wall as if to read universal secrets off the watery texture. Then heaved a shuddery sigh.

It was a helpless, untethered feeling that he hated more and more with every passing day. The space next to him increasingly deadened, and he had to look away whenever Neil leaned heavily into Andrew's side and Andrew didn't push him away, not once and not even a little.

Kevin no longer spared them glances and they probably didn't either. He hadn't spoken to Andrew and Andrew hadn't sought him out. Scared off by Renee or too busy with helping Neil in and out of the bath, changing his hundreds of bandages, threatening him, blowing him, whatever they did in the privacy of their dorm room. 

Kevin was in no rush to barge into whatever they had. He thought he might be sick if he tried.

His cowardice saved him from vomiting all over Andrew's shoes, but maybe, just maybe--that little vindicative part of him whispered--it would be worth it to see the disgust on Andrew's face. To seal the deal, cleave the final string hanging between them like a nearly severed tendon. 

Because Andrew did not need him anymore. Kevin Day was deadweight.

He pressed a lone thumb to his cheek. _Number 2_. Always second, he thought, endlessly amused and tired, and closed his eyes.

"Well?" Aaron's voice floated up to him from his work desk. A textbook clapped closed and the retractable chair scraped over carpet as he got up. "Do you hate him now?" Aaron's voice came at him from beneath his bunk. Kevin shifted just so, catching a glimpse of dirty blonde in his peripheral.

"Who," Kevin said, deciding to play dumb. If Aaron wanted a serious conversation about his brother's actions, he would have to work for it. Because Kevin didn’t particularly want to do this with him. At all. 

Instead of an answer, hazel eyes rose into view. Aaron was standing on Nicky’s mattress to peer over the rim of Kevin's bunk, propping his elbows up on the wooden blockade with an ease his twin could never have.

"I told you so," he said, looking as dead as ever, and Kevin felt any shred of endearment for him, a tiny midget of a human clambering up just to have direct eye contact, shrivel up.

"So you've come to gloat," Kevin said, and rolled away to face the wall. The Minyards made him want to leap off buildings. This interaction did little to convince him otherwise.

"No," Aaron started, and stopped. The pause continued for a while until it was broken by a short inhale. "I just wanted to tell you that if he tried something like that again, I will fight him."

 _That_ got Kevin up, surprise dulling the ache in his neck. "You." He said, disbelief obvious and obviously offensive to Aaron because his face instantly clouded over. "Taking on Andrew. For me?"

You wouldn't even do that for Katelyn, but Kevin didn't mention it.

Aaron looked like he wanted to die this time. His shoulders shifted side to side, uncertain and uncomfortable. But his eyes were very clearly honed on the discoloring still visible on Kevin's neck, Allison's intensive powdering long washed off, and the darkness that passed over his eyes could've been misinterpreted for anger and maybe stupider still, regret.

"I meant what I said," Aaron said. "And I don't like repeating myself. I'm just notifying you of my decision."

Kevin stared down at him and began to slowly reassess what he previously thought of him. The Minyards were not so wantless, after all.

"Is this you apologizing to me?" Kevin asked, as gentle as he could be.

Aaron's eyes slid off his neck and away, before finally flitting back to Kevin's face. "I was close enough to him to stop him, but I didn't. So, yeah. I guess so."

Guilt on Aaron was a reasonably new thing to witness. It sat on him uneasily and hopelessly, and the frustration showed through how tightly Aaron was holding onto Kevin's bunk. It was almost childish, the slightly curled lip; and it was almost familiar, the contempt in which he held himself in. But Kevin did not want to think of Andrew right now.

He reached up and ruffled Aaron's hair, dragging his cropped nails across his scalp. Aaron's hair was soft, strands running near-gold in the lamplight. His palm was able to remain settled for maybe two seconds before Aaron rocked back, almost taking the entire structure with him.

"What the fuck," was all he managed, wide-eyed and looking so completely betrayed at the hair tousling that Kevin almost wanted to do it again, to see how badly he reacted a second time. 

But he wasn't a monster, so he just laughed in Aaron's face.

"If you ever try feeling guilty for something Andrew did, just imagine me doing that. Then you’ll see it as it is.” Kevin said, scraping laughter off the sides of his throat like paint off old walls. It hurt, but it didn’t hurt as bad. Aaron just stared at him, shock warring with annoyance before something like understanding took over. 

He hopped off the bunk without saying anything else, mop of hair disappearing through the doorway. Kevin heard the tap run for a while. When he emerged from the bathroom, Aaron didn’t bother with climbing back up and just patiently stuck the cup of water into Kevin’s range of reach.

“Stop talking,” Aaron ordered, and Kevin could almost see the half-smile pinching at the side of his face, crooked and rare and all too real.

“Shut up, then,” Kevin replied, and took the water, carefully tucking away the tiny snort that Aaron gave him in response. 

**Author's Note:**

> a smaller promise that was not so small after all.


End file.
